


Disconnect

by stillskies



Series: Disconnect!verse [1]
Category: Hikaru no Go, Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-04
Updated: 2012-03-04
Packaged: 2017-11-01 02:47:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/351091
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stillskies/pseuds/stillskies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He isn't sure how it happens, but the aftermath won't resolve itself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Disconnect

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted in four parts on 10-08-2011

He is on a flight to Seoul for the Samsung Cup, seated between Ochi 5-dan and Isumi 4-dan. Ochi 5-dan spends the first hour of the flight trying to engage Kiyoharu in conversation when all Kiyoharu wants to do is sleep.

When he tries to politely tell Ochi 5-dan that he's really not in the mood, Ochi 5-dan simply scowls and stares out the window. He thinks he catches Isumi 4-dan giving him a sympathetic look before he goes back to his book.

Kiyoharu tries to sleep.

•

Kurata Ouza is supposed to check them into the hotel, but as soon as they reach the lobby, Kurata Ouza sees An Taeson and disappears. Saeki 7-dan sighs and goes to check them in.

By the time he comes back, Isumi 4-dan has been dragged off by one of the Chinese players. Saeki 7-dan shakes his head and hands Kiyoharu a key. "You and Ochi-kun are sharing," he says, and Kiyoharu thinks that Saeki 7-dan sounds almost apologetic, but dismisses it.

After all, if he were truly apologetic, he'd have put Ochi 5-dan with someone else.

Kiyoharu thanks him and turns to Ochi, who is looking at him with an unreadable expression. Decidedly, Kiyoharu says, "Let's go."

Ochi doesn't say anything, but he follows.

•

The entire Japanese delegation makes it through the first round of the Samsung Cup, much to Kiyoharu's relief. After all, it would have been a waste to spend all of that money to fly out here and get knocked out one round in. Shindou would never let him live it down.

Kurata Ouza suggests a drinking party to celebrate, and while Kiyoharu is skeptical about celebrating getting past the first round, he agrees to go. Even Ochi decides to tag along, though he's not sure why – after all, he's not the most social of people to begin with, and he's made it a point to hardly talk to _anyone_ since they arrived. 

They are about to leave when the Chinese pro that dragged Isumi 4-dan off earlier reappears and starts babbling in Chinese. Isumi 4-dan looks sheepishly at them and apologizes, saying that he has forgotten an earlier engagement.

The Chinese pro doesn't let Isumi 4-dan finish and starts pulling him through the lobby.

Kiyoharu looks at Ashiwara 7-dan, who shrugs.

Kurata Ouza claps his hands and grins. "Okay! Let's go!"

•

He falls out in round four against Ko Yeong-ha. He wants to blame the hangover from the night before, or the lack of sleep because Ochi Kousuke clearly can't handle alcohol and spent the entire night running from his bed to the bathroom, keeping Kiyoharu up.

Unfortunately, he's looking at the board and sees the stones laid out and realizes that he's probably just played the best game of his entire career. And it still wasn't enough.

Ko is looking at him with an appraising look and Kiyoharu tries to keep eye contact, but his gaze keeps gravitating toward the undone top button of Ko's impeccably tailored shirt. He's pretty sure that the bastard left it unbuttoned on purpose, though that beg the question of who, exactly, he's trying to seduce.

He stands up and bows, thanking Ko for the game. Ko is smirking at him and Kiyoharu is pretty sure it's because Kiyoharu couldn't be subtle if it bit him on the ass.

He quickly turns around and leaves the game hall. 

•

Kurata Ouza makes it the furthest of all the Japanese players, but gets knocked out by An Taeson, who eliminated Ko Yeong-ha the day before.

Kiyoharu skips out after the ceremony, making his excuses to Saeki 7-dan, who simply waves him off and tells him not to worry. He sees Ochi coming towards him but Saeki 7-dan intercepts him and Kiyoharu quickly makes his escape.

He ends up at the bar where Kurata Ouza took them the night of the first round. The bartender nods at him and Kiyoharu takes a seat in the back. Alcohol is alcohol, and Kiyoharu doesn't need to know Korean to order a beer.

When Ko shows up, Kiyoharu is finishing his third beer and not at all surprised. He raises his hand and Ko nods. He stops at the bar before making his way to Kiyoharu's table with a clear drink and a bottle of beer. He doesn't ask how Ko knows what Kiyoharu drinks and doesn't bother asking – Ko wouldn't understand the question and Kiyoharu wouldn't understand the answer.

Instead, he takes the bottle with a nod and starts sipping on it while Ko sits down.

Kiyoharu's stomach is pleasantly warm and he knows that he's a little buzzed because he's eyeing Ko from across the table and wondering what he looks like without the shirt. He's ninety percent sure that it's the alcohol. Even if it's not, he knows that he'll blame it on the alcohol later. 

When Kiyoharu finishes his drink, he stands. Ko stands as well, leaving his untouched drink on the table and giving Kiyoharu a predatory smile. Kiyoharu smiles back.

•

They don't go to Ko's apartment – Kiyoharu doesn't expect it. What he also doesn't expect is for Ko to have a room in the same hotel being used by the international players. 

Kiyoharu starts to unbutton his shirt when Ko bats his hands away and does it himself, kissing down his chest as the skin is revealed. He's not sure if it's the beer or if Ko is just really damned good, but it's probably the best feeling he's ever had.

When Ko pulls away and starts to unbutton his own shirt, Kiyoharu tries to do the same for him. Ko raises an eyebrow and shakes his head, pulling away from Kiyoharu's hands. Kiyoharu glares and reaches for Ko's trouser button, which gets him an approving hum from Ko.

Within a matter of minutes, their clothes are scattered across the floor and Kiyoharu is being pressed into the mattress, writhing as Ko strokes him. He wants to _touch_ and Ko is smirking at him so Kiyoharu wraps one hand behind Ko's neck and _pulls_ , crashing their mouths together.

He can feel Ko smiling into the kiss, and Kiyoharu runs his tongue against his lips. Ko starts stroking him more insistently and Kiyoharu groans. Ko takes the opportunity to invade his mouth, and Kiyoharu bucks hard into Ko's hand. 

Ko pulls back after a moment and Kiyoharu takes a large gulp of air before rolling them over and straddling Ko's thighs. He takes Ko's length in his hand and strokes it slowly. His eyes never leave Ko's face.

A few minutes pass and Ko is the one writhing against the mattress, and Kiyoharu is feeling pretty damned proud of himself. Slowly, he scoots down until he can comfortably take Ko into his mouth. His mouth has barely passed the tip of Ko's cock when Ko murmurs something that Kiyoharu can't understand.

He lifts his head and looks at Ko, who is gesturing for Kiyoharu to turn around. 

As soon as he does, Ko's hands are gripping his thighs and his mouth is around Kiyoharu's cock. Kiyoharu groans and shifts his hips before taking Ko back into his mouth. He can feel Ko groan around Kiyoharu's cock and the vibrations feel pretty damn good.

He pulls back and flicks his tongue against the head of Ko's cock and Ko groans again. He's about to do it again when he suddenly feels a finger pressing against his ass.

Kiyoharu comes. Hard. 

He collapses onto the bed and suddenly it's Ko who is straddling him. Ko has one hand wrapped around himself and Kiyoharu can just watch. Ko's eyes are slits by the time Kiyoharu has enough energy to pull Ko's hand away and pin him to the bed. 

Ko looks up at him and Kiyoharu's mouth goes dry. Ko grins up at him and Kiyoharu finds himself grinning back until Ko flips them and pins Kiyoharu face down on the bed. Kiyoharu's protest is cut off by the feeling of Ko's tongue on the small of Kiyoharu's back and the feeling of Ko's finger inside of him.

Kiyoharu thrusts back against Ko's finger, groaning into the pillow and raising his hips to give Ko easier access. Ko bites the skin under Kiyoharu's ass and Kiyoharu bites back a whimper.

Suddenly, a second finger joins the first and Kiyoharu moans. It's a little uncomfortable, but it passes quickly and soon he's begging for more in broken Japanese. Ko either understands or decides to move forward on his own because a third finger is quickly inserted and Kiyoharu is thrusting against them. 

He's rock hard again by the time Ko removes his fingers and places the tip of his cock against Kiyoharu's ass. Kiyoharu looks over his shoulder and gives Ko a pointed look. Ko raises an eyebrow at the same time as he pushes into Kiyoharu.

Ko starts off slow, thrusting shallowly, trying to get Kiyoharu used to it, but Kiyoharu is having none of that. Just as Ko thrusts forward, Kiyoharu thrusts back, taking Ko in deeper and eliciting a moan of approval from Ko. Kiyoharu tries to steady himself on one hand and take his cock in the other. Ko's hands are gripping Kiyoharu's hips, and Kiyoharu mirrors his strokes to Ko's thrusts.

He can feel Ko tense and a moment later, Ko's teeth are digging into Kiyoharu's shoulder in a really nice way and Ko is coming in him. The grip on his hips becomes bruising, and just as Ko slumps against him, Kiyoharu comes again.

They collapse onto the bed. Kiyoharu knows that he should get up, clean himself off and go back to his room. After all, he needs to be up early to catch his flight, and he doubts Ko wants him here much longer.

Ko is looking at him and Kiyoharu finds it hard to turn away. Instead of getting out of the bed, he moves closer to Ko. Ko buries one hand in his hair and brings Kiyoharu closer.

Kiyoharu closes his eyes as Ko's tongue traces the bite mark on Kiyoharu's shoulder. Ko's free hand is lazily trailing down Kiyoharu's side, and Kiyoharu decides he can sleep on the plane. He slides his thigh between Ko's legs and rubs.

Ko smiles.

•

Ochi is waiting for him when he returns to their room in the morning. Kiyoharu ignores him and heads straight for the shower.

He makes it quick – he only has thirty minutes to pack and get downstairs. 

He's wiping the fog away from the mirror when he notices his neck is covered in bruises. His body aches and he can still feel Ko's body against his. He grabs the hotel robe and goes back into the main room to start tossing his clothes back into his carry-on. 

Ochi is watching him with an unreadable expression and Kiyoharu wants to fidget. He grabs a pair of boxers, his jeans and a t-shirt and goes back into the bathroom to get dressed.

•

Kurata Ouza is waiting for them in the lobby, impatiently tapping his foot. An Taeson is standing beside him, smiling in a way that Kiyoharu is sure is only serving to worsen Kurata Ouza's mood. 

Ashiwara 7-dan and Saeki 7-dan are chatting quietly to the side. Kiyoharu nods and Saeki 7-dan gives him a curious look. Ashiwara 7-dan places a hand on Saeki 7-dan's hip and leans forward. Whatever it is that he whispers, Saeki 7-dan nods and moves away from him and towards Kiyoharu.

"Are you feeling all right?" Saeki asks.

Kiyoharu nods and shifts his weight to his left foot.

"Are you going to be able to sit?" Saeki's voice is quiet, and Kiyoharu is sure his cheeks are flaming red.

"I'll be fine," Kiyoharu says and rubs his neck. The shirt's collar isn't high enough to hide all of the bruises, but it covers the majority of them. He wonders if one of the shops at the airport will sell sweaters or scarves; he'd gladly pay the exorbitant mark up in order to hide them before they land in Tokyo.

Ashiwara 7-dan joins them a moment later and hands him a plastic bag. "I brought you some painkillers," he explains when Kiyoharu simply stares at the bag. "I figured it was better than nothing."

Kiyoharu thanks him awkwardly. 

•

It's a testament to how much his parents pay attention to him that they don't notice he's wearing a scarf in August. Nor do they ask how the tournament went, but Kiyoharu has come to expect that by now.

He spends the rest of his first day home in bed on his stomach. He's not sure how long the ache is going to last, and he has university the next morning. 

The pills Ashiwara 7-dan gave him are on his bedside table. He pops two more and goes to sleep.

•

Kiyoharu sees Shindou a month later when he goes to Tokyo for the Kisei league matches. 

"Yashiro!" Shindou yells and waves his arms, just in case Kiyoharu can't find him. Kiyoharu shakes his head and goes over. "How have you been? Heard about the Samsung Cup."

Kiyoharu shrugs. He's been trying not to think about it. "I got further than I thought I would."

"Yeah, but to lose to Ko Yeong-ha? Man, I know how that feels." Shindou pats him on the back as they walk toward the Ki-in. "I bet he was gloating. A bastard to the end, huh?"

He laughs nervously and doesn't say anything, mostly because Ko _wasn't_ an ass about it, at least not to Kiyoharu's face, anyway. Besides, he has resolved not to think about Ko Yeong-ha. "How did that wedding go?"

Shindou makes a face. "Oh man," he says, shaking his head. "Akari's mom kept giving me these pitying looks, and Touya wasn't any help."

Kiyoharu listens to Shindou chatter until they get to the game room and go to their boards.

•

He’s attending more international tournaments lately, which is a good thing, he thinks. After all, it’s getting his name out there and moving him out of Shindou’s and Touya’s shadow, which he didn’t really know bothered him until one of the Korean pros asked him for a game after the Samsung Cup; the recognition felt surprisingly good.

The only downside that he can see is that Ko is _everywhere._ It shouldn’t surprise him; after all, Ko Yeong-ha is as highly regarded as Touya Akira, and Kiyoharu knows that Touya is invited to _everything._ The difference is that Touya doesn’t go to everything, and it seems like Ko does.

Whenever he enters a game hall, his eyes seek out Ko. He tells himself it’s because he respects Ko as a player – which is true; Ko Yeong-ha is an excellent go player – but he’s starting to realize that this might not be the only reason.

He just doesn’t think he’s ready to analyze what the real reason might be yet.

•

Kiyoharu is filling his plate when Ko comes up to him. Neither of them says anything, but Kiyoharu is aware of Ko’s every movement. He’s grabbing a pair of chopsticks when Ko brushes against him and the chopsticks are suddenly falling onto the table.

Ko raises an eyebrow and Kiyoharu flushes. He picks the chopsticks up and grabs a napkin as well. Ko looks like he’s about to say something, but Kiyoharu quickly disappears into the crowd.

•

He hears that Hong Su-yeong is in town from Shindou. 

"If you want a rematch," Shindou says, "he'll give you one."

Kiyoharu takes the next train to Tokyo, and Shindou meets him at the station. He tosses the strap of his duffel bag over his shoulder and waves to Shindou, who is talking animatedly on his phone.

"Sorry," Shindou says after a moment. "Touya says you can stay at his house tonight. His parents are in Korea this week."

"Thanks."

Shindou grins. "You should be thanking Touya, not me. Anyway, the salon is about twenty minutes away from here, so let's get going."

•

No one gives Shindou a second glance, but every eye in the room turns to Kiyoharu as soon as he steps through the doors. 

There is a murmur of conversation and Kiyoharu can make out Ko's name, but that's it. 

Hong Su-yeong walks across the room and nods at them. "Welcome."

Kiyoharu bows. "Thank you for having us." It sounds out of place – after all, this is a business – but he doesn't know what else to say, and being polite is better than saying nothing.

Hong shrugs. "I've already got a board over there."

Shindou nods and Kiyoharu follows. 

There is a game on the board and Kiyoharu recognizes it. Hong is watching his face closely and doesn't move to clear the game. Shindou looks down and whistles. 

"That was your game with Ko Yeong-ha, right?" Shindou is looking at him.

Kiyoharu nods.

Shindou looks back at the board with a critical eye. "It's a good game."

"Very good," Hong says, looking Kiyoharu in the eye. "Yeong-ha was impressed."

"I couldn't care less," Kiyoharu says, though it sounds weak to his ears. "I thought we were here to play?"

Hong nods and clears the game away.

"Loser buys lunch," Shindou says.

"You're on," Hong says with a grin.

"You're only saying that because you won't have to pay," Kiyoharu grouses, but smiles anyway.

•

Hong ends up buying them lunch before they head off to Touya's. Kiyoharu is picking up his bag when Hong pulls him aside.

"Here is my e-mail," Hong says. "I hope we can play again."

Kiyoharu grins and digs through his bag for his notebook. He finds it and tears out a piece of paper. It takes him a bit longer to find a pen, but he does and scribbles his e-mail and net-go server name on it. "Here," he says. "I'm always up for a game."

Shindou is rolling his eyes. "We're gonna be late if we don't go right now," he says, giving Hong an apologetic look. 

Hong nods. "Tell Touya-san I say hello."

"Will do."

•

It amazes Kiyoharu that Shindou and Touya can even be in the same room together for more than five minutes. He once tried asking Touya about it – how he can stand the constant fights and the yelling, but Touya could only shrug and say 'it's Shindou.'

They're fighting again and Kiyoharu rolls his eyes before going into the next room. Touya's books are neatly stacked on the table and he's perusing the titles when he sees the Korean characters on one of the spines. Curious, he takes the book from the stack and starts to look at it.

He's curled on one of the chairs in the study, trying to wrap his tongue around the sounds when Touya finds him. Touya's cheeks are flushed and his eyes are narrowed; Kiyoharu figures that it probably wasn't a good fight.

"I apologize, Yashiro," Touya says, shutting the door to the study. 

Kiyoharu shrugs and puts the book down. "I'm cool."

Touya looks at the book and cocks his head to the side. "Are you interested in learning Korean?"

"Not particularly," Kiyoharu hedges, but he can feel his cheeks heating up. "It was there, and it looked interesting."

"I can teach you the basics," Touya offers. "I'm hardly fluent, but I can help you with phonetics, at least."

Kiyoharu looks down at the book and back at Touya. "Sure."

•

He stays the weekend at Touya's house. Shindou comes in and out, and he wonders what exactly is going on between Touya and Shindou. Every single fight ends with them in the other's personal space, so close that it makes Kiyoharu a bit uncomfortable to be sitting there, watching. 

He's taken to disappearing after games between Shindou and Touya, and neither of them seems to notice. That suits Kiyoharu just fine.

By the end of the weekend, he has been thoroughly trounced by both Shindou and Touya, finally beaten Shindou by more than half a moku, and has the basics of the Korean language down. 

He's gathering up his things when Touya stops him.

"Here," Touya says, holding out the Korean book.

Kiyoharu frowns. "This is yours."

Touya shrugs. "I haven't used this book in a month," he explains. "I'm on the next one."

Instead of arguing, Kiyoharu takes the book. "Thanks."

•

He e-mails Hong as soon as he gets home. He doesn't expect a reply right away, but he figures that Hong is the best person on whom to test his Korean. 

Ko passes through his mind, but Kiyoharu ignores him. It was a one-time thing, probably because Ko was bored out of his mind and Kiyoharu was convenient. That's all. 

He tries to ignore the flash of emotions that the thought conjures. It's no use getting attached to someone who makes sleeping around a game.

He strips out of his clothes and tosses them on the ground before falling into bed.

•

He has a lull in his game schedule a few months later and decides that he needs to get away. Hong suggests coming to Korea – after all, Kiyoharu needs the language practice – and Kiyoharu figures why not and books a ticket.

•

He finishes out his first year of college with remarkably good grades considering the amount of absences due to tournaments and oteai matches. 

Neither of his parents mentions it, even though he brings it up at dinner.

When he says that he's thinking of changing his major from Law to Korean, it doesn't surprise him that his father is against it. It doesn't matter what arguments Kiyoharu comes up with – translating is a good business right now, knowing a second language is always a benefit – his father is against it.

"If you switch your majors," his father says calmly, "you will be on your own. I will not fund your education for you to throw it in my face."  
Kiyoharu's mother pours his father more sake. 

"Fine," Kiyoharu growls. "I'll stay in Law."

His father nods and sips his sake, and Kiyoharu digs his nails into his palm.

"But," Kiyoharu says, and his father looks at him. "I'm going to school in Tokyo."

•

His father has only two conditions: that he goes to Chuo University and that Kiyoharu pay for his own rent and necessities. Kiyoharu agrees.

He calls Shindou as soon as he's off the train. 

"What's up?" Shindou sounds as though he's just woken up, and Kiyoharu sighs.

"You said you'd go apartment hunting with me," Kiyoharu reminds him.

"Shit." He can hear Shindou moving around and shakes his head. "Damn it, are you at the station?"

Kiyoharu tells him yes.

"I'll be right there," Shindou informs him and hangs up.

Kiyoharu sighs again and pockets his phone.

•

They look at fifteen apartments, varying in price and quality. He keeps trying to tell Shindou he doesn't need two bedrooms – after all, it's just Kiyoharu who will be living there – but Shindou waves him off and tells him that he needs the extra room for when people crash.  
Kiyoharu doesn't bother mentioning that the only 'people' who would be crashing there is Shindou. 

In the end, he decides to sign a lease in between the Institute and the university. It's close enough to Chuo that his father won't have a problem with it, and it's close enough to the Institute that Kiyoharu won't have to worry about a long commute. 

It's a one bedroom, much to Shindou's dismay. "You can sleep on the couch, Shindou," Kiyoharu informs him as he signs the lease. "I'll make sure to get a good one."

Shindou punches him in the shoulder and Kiyoharu grins.

The landlord hands him the key and informs him he can move in next week.

•

The move is relatively easy – after all, Kiyoharu doesn't really have a lot of belongings, and the only furniture he has is his bed, his nightstand and his desk. The cost of movers is ridiculous, but it's Kiyoharu's only real choice.

"Let's get the boxes loaded first," the mover suggests. "It'll be easier to take apart the bed frame and the desk once the room is clear."

Kiyoharu and the rest of the movers nod.

He picks up a box and starts toward the door.

•

It takes them an hour to load everything into the van and Kiyoharu thanks them. The man in charge nods. "We'll get your stuff there by Friday."

"I'll be there."

He watches them drive off and goes back into the house to clean his room.

He's just finished vacuuming when he notices his mother standing in the doorway, watching him with an inscrutable expression. Quickly, Kiyoharu turns around. "I'm sorry," he says and tries not to fidget. "I didn't know anyone was home."

His mother doesn't say anything and instead stares at the empty room. Kiyoharu looks around as well, trying to see if there is some surface that he failed to clean properly. The room is empty and Kiyoharu can't see a speck of dust anywhere.

"Make sure to put the vacuum away," his mother finally says before turning around and leaving.

Kiyoharu watches her go. 

•

He gets into Tokyo later than expected. He tries to wait for his father to come home, but when the clock strikes eight o'clock and his father still hasn't returned, Kiyoharu knows that he can't wait any longer.

Touya is waiting for him at the train station and Kiyoharu apologizes.

"It's quite all right, Yashiro," Touya assures him.

They start towards the Touya home and Touya makes polite conversation. It's a testament to how well Touya knows him that he doesn't mention Kiyoharu's parents at all and instead asks about how the packing went, and whether or not everything got done.

Kiyoharu replies that everything went well and his things should arrive on Friday.

"You are welcome to stay at my home until then," Touya informs him. "Father and Mother are in China for the rest of the month."

"Thanks," Kiyoharu says.

•

His first week in Tokyo is busy. He hardly sees Touya or Shindou – both of them have match-heavy schedules, and Touya tutors three nights a week – so he's mostly left to his own devices, which suits him just fine. 

It's odd to walk into the Tokyo Ki-in without Shindou next to him. The layout is different from the Kansai Ki-in, and it takes him no time at all to get lost.

He's about to turn around and go back the way he came when he runs into Ochi. Ochi stares at him inscrutably and Kiyoharu stares back.

It would figure that the first person he runs into is Ochi. He stifles a sigh and nods. Ochi continues to stare.

"Look," Kiyoharu says, running a hand through his hair. "I think I'm lost."

Ochi blinks. "What are you doing here?"

This time Kiyoharu sighs. "I'm transferring to the Tokyo Ki-in," he explains. "I'm supposed to meet with Tsuzuki-sensei."

"Ah." Ochi nods, as though coming to a conclusion. "I will bring you to Tsuzuki-sensei in exchange for a game."

•

Kiyoharu wins by 1.5 moku. Ochi has gotten better, he has to admit. Ochi looks like he wants to talk about the game, but Kiyoharu mentions Tsuzuki-sensei and Ochi clams up. 

Ochi takes him to Tsuzuki-sensei and disappears. He has a brief moment where he wonders if Ochi is going to the bathroom before he dismisses the thought. 

"I have to admit," Tsuzuki-sensei is saying as Kiyoharu takes a seat. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to make it in today."

Kiyoharu bows. "I apologize," he says.

Tsuzuki-sensei waves away the apology. "I see Ochi-kun brought you here."

"Yes," Kiyoharu replies. "I ran into him in the hall."

"He's an odd one," Tsuzuki-sensei says conversationally. He's pulling out papers and laying them neatly on his desk. "But then, I suppose people would say that Go pros are all a bit odd."

Kiyoharu laughs politely.

"But enough about that. I understand that you wish to transfer to this Ki-in, yes?"

•

It takes an hour and a half to fill out the necessary paperwork. 

Once he is done, Tsuzuki-sensei offers to give him a tour of the Ki-in. 

By the time they reach the game hall, the oteai matches of the day have begun wrapping up. He spots Saeki 7-dan leaning against a wall, sipping a can of juice.

Tsuzuki-sensei finishes his speech and tells Kiyoharu he may continue to walk around at his leisure. Kiyoharu thanks him and waits until Tsuzuki-sensei turns around before he makes his way to Saeki 7-dan.

"Shindou-kun said that you were moving here," Saeki 7-dan says in greeting. 

Kiyoharu nods. "How did your game go?"

Saeki 7-dan makes a face. "I lost."

Shindou comes around the corner with a huge grin. "Don't worry too much Saeki-san," Shindou says cheerfully. "At least you didn't lose to Ashiwara-san."

Somehow, Kiyoharu doesn't think that Saeki 7-dan is comforted.

Shindou turns his attention to Kiyoharu. "All done?"

"Yup," Kiyoharu says with a smile. "I'm officially a member of the Tokyo Ki-in."

"When's your first game?" Shindou asks as he toes on his shoes and shoves his indoor slippers into his cubby. 

"Two weeks," Kiyoharu replies. "I wanted a little bit of time to get settled into the new place and start school."

It's Shindou's turn to make a face. "I don't see how you do it."

Saeki 7-dan ruffles Shindou's hair. "Some people can," he says. Kiyoharu watches as Saeki 7-dan's attention is drawn across the room. Ashiwara 7-dan is chatting with Waya 5-dan. Waya 5-dan looks like he's waiting for someone to appear from the shadows and kill him. "Sorry guys," Saeki 7-dan says. "I'll catch up with you later."

Shindou rolls his eyes and they both watch as Saeki 7-dan makes his way towards Ashiwara 7-dan. "They're so obvious," Shindou says with a sigh.

Kiyoharu doesn't say anything, but silently agrees.

•

He's settled into his new life by the time the next international tournament comes around. 

Kiyoharu falls out in the first round of the qualifiers against Morishita 9-dan. Shindou does a little better and doesn't lose until the third round, but he still falls out.

Against Ogata Jyuudan. Somehow, this only makes it worse, and Shindou is at Kiyoharu's that night getting plastered. Kiyoharu finds it hard to keep up with Shindou when he drinks, so he doesn't try. By the time Shindou is on his fifth beer, Kiyoharu is still on his first.

"It's not that he's not a good player," Shindou is ranting, waving his beer around and making Kiyoharu wonder if beer stains will come out of the upholstery, "but he was _smirking._ And if Touya makes it, then they're probably going to end up sharing a _room_."

Kiyoharu doesn't understand why this is so upsetting and tells Shindou so.

Shindou looks at him incredulously. "Have you seen the way Ogata looks at Touya? It's like… like… like something creepy."

Kiyoharu rolls his eyes. "I'm sure it will be fine, Shindou."

•

The Japanese representatives for the Nongshim Cup are Touya Akira 8-dan, Morishita Shigeo 9-dan, Ogata Seiji Jyuudan, Kurata Atsushi Ouza, and Shirakawa Michio 8-dan. 

He isn't sure why, but Kiyoharu books a plane ticket to South Korea to watch. Shindou also decides to go, though Kiyoharu is sure that it has more to do with supervising Touya and Ogata than watching the actual matches.

Hong e-mails him the night before Kiyoharu's flight to say that he's part of the delegation meeting the Japanese players. Kiyoharu replies that he'll see him tomorrow, then.

•

Hong Su-yeong has grown. He's as tall as Kiyoharu now, much to Shindou's annoyance. Hong is smiling down at Shindou, who actually has to look up.

Touya greets Hong politely and ignores Shindou entirely. Something is different between Shindou and Touya now, but Kiyoharu can't put his finger on it.

" _Are they sleeping together?_ " Ko Yeong-ha asks, and, for some reason, Kiyoharu is startled by the fact that he can understand what Ko is saying.

" _I am not knowing,_ " Kiyoharu replies carefully, and is satisfied to see surprise cross Ko's face. It's replaced by a knowing smile which Kiyoharu does his best to ignore. He turns back to Hong. " _I am saying correct?_ "

Hong nods. " _It's not bad. We have to work on your grammar, though._ "

Kiyoharu nods and ignores the interested look that Ko is giving him and Hong.

"When did you start speaking Korean?" Shindou is looking back and forth between Kiyoharu and Hong, utterly confused.

"He began learning a year or so ago," Touya replies icily. Kiyoharu watches as Shindou tenses. 

" _It's a shame you won't be playing,_ " Ko says to Shindou and waits for Hong to translate. " _I was so looking forward to it._ "

Shindou glares. "Yeah, well I could take you on right now. Why wait for an official match?"

Hong translates and Kiyoharu is starting to get a bad feeling. Ko's eyes are traveling up and down Shindou's body and Shindou seems entirely oblivious. Touya, however, is not.

" _There is a practice room in the hotel,_ " Ko says with a slow smile, " _Or, perhaps, we'd be more comfortable in my room?_ "

Kiyoharu rolls his eyes while Hong translates for Shindou. He keeps Touya in his sight and watches as Touya's entire body stiffens. The innuendo is lost on Shindou, mostly because Hong paraphrases.

"You're on," Shindou says.

Touya turns on his heel and leaves.

•

He's sharing a room with Shindou. Shindou is pacing back and forth while Kiyoharu unpacks his suitcase. 

"Can you believe that bastard?" Shindou says. Kiyoharu isn't sure if he's talking about Ko or Ogata – he's been ranting about both for the last hour. 

Personally, he can see why Shindou has reservations about Ogata Jyuudan now. Ogata was quick to lead Touya away with a hand around his waist and a quick look back to Shindou. He's not sure if Shindou noticed the way that Touya relaxed or not, and he figures it's better to just not bring it up.

"I mean, does he really have to do that? In _public_?" 

Ogata Jyuudan, Kiyoharu decides. After all, Ko only offered to play a game, which is what set Touya off in the first place.

Kiyoharu just doesn't understand, and he's not sure if he wants to.

•

Shirakawa 8-dan falls out in the first round. 

The next day, Shindou loses to Ko in an unofficial match.

•

The banquets are beginning to get on Kiyoharu's nerves. 

He spends the majority of his time between Shindou and Touya, who are watching each other like hawks and pretending that the other doesn't exist at the same time.

Ko is spending most of his time eyeing Shindou, which irks not only Touya but Kiyoharu as well, though he's not sure why. Ko hasn't spoken to him since they day they arrived, and he doesn't expect him to. 

Ogata alternates between staring at Touya and sending Shindou knowing smirks, which only serves to irritate both Shindou and Touya. This, in turn, pisses Kiyoharu off because Shindou won't stop talking about it.

By the end of the third round's banquet, Kiyoharu decides enough is enough and stops going.

•

Ko sits next to him at the bar and orders a glass of red wine. Kiyoharu doesn't bother looking up.

" _They won't be missing you?_ " Kiyoharu asks as he sips his beer.

Ko doesn't say anything. 

Kiyoharu sighs and finishes his beer.

•

He's careful to keep the marks below his collarbone this time. Ko gives him an infuriating smirk which has Kiyoharu slamming Ko against the wall and sliding his hands under Ko's shirt.

Ko laughs.

•

Shindou is waiting up for him when he gets back to the room.

"Where did you go?" Shindou asks.

"To the bar," Kiyoharu replies. It's not a lie – not entirely. Shindou doesn't need to know that Kiyoharu just spent the last hour begging Ko to fuck him.

•

It becomes a habit. After each round, Kiyoharu goes to the bar.

Ko always meets him there.

During the day, they ignore each other, and Ko continues to watch Shindou. Touya watches Ko, and Shindou watches Touya. Ogata Jyuudan watches all three of them, and Kiyoharu shakes his head and tries to stay out of it, except Kiyoharu is watching Ko now, too.

•

Ko falls out against Ogata Jyuudan during the fifth round. 

When Kiyoharu goes to the bar that night, he knows that Ko won't show up.

•

There is a bruise on Ogata Jyuudan's neck the next day. Kiyoharu is careful not to stare and keeps his attention on Hong, who is doing his best to correct Kiyoharu's horrible grammar.

" _Wrong tense,_ " Hong says for the fifteenth time.

Ogata Jyuudan is standing against the wall and Ko is standing nonchalantly next to him. Kiyoharu knows he's staring, but he can't stop.

Hong follows his gaze and sighs. " _Yeong-ha has the worst taste._ "

Kiyoharu pulls his attention back to Hong, cheeks burning. " _I was thinking Ogata Jyuudan has worse taste._ "

Hong laughs.

•

The final round of the Nongshim Cup is between An Taeson and Kurata Atsushi Ouza. 

"If he wins," Shindou says quietly, "Kurata-san is going to be insufferable."

"I'm surprised you know what insufferable means, Shindou," Touya replies acerbically.

Shindou scowls.

"One hundred yen on Kurata," Kiyoharu says.

"One hundred on An," Hong and Shindou say simultaneously.

Touya surprises them all by putting one hundred yen on Kurata Ouza.

•

"I _told_ you," Shindou grouses as Kurata Ouza offers yet another passerby his autograph. "Insufferable."

Touya smiles.

•

There is a knock on the hotel door and Kiyoharu rolls out of bed to get it. Shindou had left earlier that morning, saying something about needing to talk to Touya. That suits Kiyoharu just fine – if he has to listen to one more screaming match between the two of them, he'll probably throttle them both.

He runs a hand through his hair and grabs the doorknob.

Ko is standing on the other side.

" _I must say, I prefer your hair like this,_ " Ko says as he walks into the hotel room.

Kiyoharu shuts the door and leans against it, crossing his arms over his chest. " _What you doing here?_ "

Ko smiles. " _I heard you were waiting at the bar the other night._ "

Kiyoharu shrugs. " _Not waiting. Drinking._ "

He can feel Ko's eyes lingering on Kiyoharu's chest, taking in the fading bruises one by one. " _Not waiting?_ "

" _Not waiting._ "

There is a predatory gleam in Ko's eyes and Kiyoharu feels his body reacting. He stays against the door and Ko moves toward him. They're almost touching when the door moves and Kiyoharu hears Shindou mutter, "What the hell?"

Ko leans forward and whispers against Kiyoharu's ear. " _You know what room I'm in._ "

Kiyoharu moves out of the way and the door opens. Ko nods at Shindou who stares wide-eyed as Ko leaves the room.

"What the hell was _he_ doing here?" Shindou asks.

"Who knows?" Kiyoharu replies.

•

Kiyoharu has enough pride to not go to Ko's room that night. After all, he doesn't want to appear desperate. It's just sex, he tells himself. It doesn't mean anything.

He spends his last night in Korea staring at the ceiling and trying not to think.

•

The flight back to Japan is loud. Kiyoharu takes the window seat and forces Shindou and Touya to sit next to each other. Shindou protests and Kiyoharu glares.

"I'm not sitting in the middle of your your fight," he tells him. "Whatever the hell it is, it's got nothing to do with me."

Touya places a hand on Shindou's arm and Shindou stops arguing.

Kiyoharu shakes his head and looks out the window. He spends the next two hours wondering what Ko Yeong-ha is doing.

•

Kiyoharu is on a winning streak after he gets back from Korea. He's pretty sure it has to do with what seems to be an endless well of frustration, but what matters is that he's winning. 

Shindou is sitting on the other side of the goban and Kiyoharu grins.

"Sorry, Yashiro," Shindou says, and he doesn't sound the least bit apologetic. "Your streak ends here."

"Not a chance, Shindou," Kiyoharu says confidently.

•

Sushi, Kiyoharu decides, tastes much better when you're not the one paying for it. Shindou is grousing about how he'd rather have ramen and Kiyoharu grins.

"You're the one who made the bet, Shindou," Touya tells him, primly taking another piece of sushi off the plate and dipping it into the soy sauce. 

"It wasn't my fault!" Shindou laments, shoving a tuna roll into his mouth. "How was I supposed to know he'd pull that stupid move at the end?"

"How, indeed," Touya murmurs, dabbing the corners of his mouth with a napkin.

Shindou levels a glare at Touya. "Hey, my moves aren't _that_ unpredictable."

Kiyoharu rolls his eyes and steals a piece of Shindou's sushi.

•

He’s really not sure how much Hong knows, but he clearly knows _something_ and that’s a problem. Not that he cares whether or not Hong knows that Kiyoharu has a life outside of go – in fact, Hong probably knows about as much of Kiyoharu’s life as Shindou and Touya do – but he does have a problem with him knowing that there is a possible connection to Ko outside of go.

Hong brings it up one day when Kiyoharu is visiting.

“ _Have you seen Yeong-ha since you’ve been here?_ ”

Kiyoharu nearly chokes on his soda. “ _No. Why I would?_ ”

“ _Wrong word order,_ ” Hong informs him before continuing the conversation. “ _It just seems like you guys would get along._ ”

He doesn’t point out that the two of them don’t ever interact in public aside from a polite greeting. “ _I have not been seeing him,_ ” he tells Hong and hopes that’s that.

Apparently, it’s not. “ _Do you want to?_ ”

Kiyoharu doesn't have an answer to that, so he doesn't say anything.

Hong doesn't mention Ko the rest of the trip.

•

"We are holding an international exhibition match for up and coming pros from China, Japan and Korea," Tsuzuki-sensei tells him. "We would like you to play in it, Yashiro-kun."

"Thank you for the honor," Kiyoharu says, head bowed. "I would love to."

"Wonderful," Tsuzuki-sensei says. He picks up a piece of paper and hands it to Kiyoharu. "These are the people who have been invited to play from China and Korea. They have all accepted."

Kiyoharu looks at the list and isn't surprised to see Ko Yeong-ha's name. 

•

He's in the middle of a paper when someone starts pounding on his door. He sighs and sets his laptop on the couch.

Shindou's face appears through the peephole, and Kiyoharu entertains the idea of pretending he's not home.

"I saw your eye, Yashiro," Shindou calls through the door. "Now open up."

Kiyoharu shoots his laptop a remorseful glance and opens the door. "What do you want, Shindou?"

Shindou pushes into Kiyoharu's apartment and starts pacing. "What do you think of Touya?"

Kiyoharu blinks. When Shindou's face remains serious, he decides that maybe he needs some beer. He has the feeling it's going to be a long night.

•

"So," Kiyoharu says, setting his beer down on the table and looking up from his Korean paper, "what you're telling me is that you think that you're attracted to Touya?"

Shindou nods.

"And you're _just_ figuring this out?"

Another nod.

"And you think that Touya is attracted to you because he didn't punch you when you kissed him?"

"Yes."

Kiyoharu rubs his hand over his face. The Korean characters are melting together and he's glad he decided to start the paper a few days before it was due. He looks at Shindou, who is sitting across from him with a dejected look on his face. "How is this a bad thing?"

"It just is!" Shindou insists. 

Kiyoharu sighs. "How?"

"I don't know," Shindou says, putting his head in his hands. "I mean, it's _Touya_."

"And?"

"And Touya is supposed to be all traditional and this wasn't supposed to happen."

Kiyoharu types a few more sentences. "Who says?"

"Touya and Go are all I have," Shindou says quietly. "I can't screw them up."

"And you think that pretending nothing happened isn't going to screw it up?"

Shindou sighs and shakes his head.

•

Kiyoharu volunteers to be part of the welcoming party. When Shindou asks why, Kiyoharu shrugs and asks, why not? He doesn't say that it's because Ogata Jyuudan is also on the welcoming committee, and that he wants Ko to remember that he's there, too. Shindou doesn't have an answer to that, so Kiyoharu heads towards the airport.

The first person that walks into the terminal is Ko Yeong-ha. Kiyoharu nods and Ko nods back before heading towards Ogata Jyuudan. Kiyoharu grinds his teeth together and watches as the rest of the Korean team appears. 

Hong sees him and waves, and Kiyoharu waits until Hong gets to him.

" _How was the flight?_ " Kiyoharu asks.

" _Long,_ " Hong says, rolling his eyes. " _Irufhan snores, and Yeong-ha is in a bad mood._ "

Kiyoharu looks over his shoulder and catches Ko staring at him. Kiyoharu stares back for a moment before turning back to Hong. " _He seems to be fine to me._ "

Hong shrugs. " _Who knows?_ "

•

The Ki-in is sponsoring a welcome dinner, and all of the Japanese representatives are expected to attend. Kiyoharu is waiting for Shindou and Touya when Ko comes up behind him and places a hand on Kiyoharu's hip.

" _I was wondering if you knew any good bars,_ " Ko's lips are on Kiyoharu's ear and Kiyoharu leans back against Ko's chest for a moment before jerking away. Ko keeps his grip on Kiyoharu's hip, however, and Kiyoharu doesn't put any real distance between them.

He wants to tell Ko no, he doesn't know of any good bars. But he's beginning to realize that Ko Yeong-ha is an addiction, one that he's not strong enough to beat. " _There's a good one down the street, next to the train station._ "

Ko smiles into Kiyoharu's neck. " _Perhaps I'll try it, then._ " 

He sees Shindou enter the hotel lobby and, just as quickly as Ko arrived, he disappears. Kiyoharu can see the frown on Shindou's face before they reach him.

"Everything okay?" Shindou asks, eyes narrowed in the direction Ko must have gone. 

"Yeah," Kiyoharu says distractedly. "Everything's fine."

•

Somehow, he ends up at the bar against his better judgment. He orders a beer and sits down.

He doesn't wait long.

•

Ko's mouth is against Kiyoharu's ear, and the breathy noises are driving Kiyoharu mad.

He thrusts back against Ko hard and grunts in satisfaction. Ko takes the hint and picks up the pace.

•

Kiyoharu collapses on his bed and stares up at the ceiling. His legs are going to be killing him in the morning because he missed the last train and had to walk home from Ko's hotel room, and he's pretty sure that Ko left a mark on his neck. 

His alarm clock is going to go off in a few hours and Kiyoharu decides that he'll worry about it in the morning.

•

His first exhibition game is against Hong Su-yeong. 

Kiyoharu nods to Hong, who watches him quietly. 

They nigiri, and Kiyoharu can feel hundreds of eyes on him. He tries to concentrate on the board, but his mind keeps wandering. He looks out at the crowd and spots Ko immediately. 

Ko is watching.

Suddenly, the other gazes fall away, and the only one that matters is the one he can feel like a brand. He catches Hong frowning at him a few times, but there isn't any time to worry about that.

Kiyoharu wins by half a moku.

•

The announcers are discussing the game when Hong pulls him aside.

" _Are you all right?_ " 

Kiyoharu nods. His lower back is on fire from sitting for so long, but he has some painkillers in his bag. He just needs to get away to take them.

" _You look like crap,_ " Hong says bluntly. " _Does this have to do with Yeong-ha?_ "

Kiyoharu freezes. 

Hong sighs. " _Damn him,_ " he mutters.

" _I don't know what you're talking about,_ " Kiyoharu manages to say.

" _Look,_ " Hong says, running a hand through his hair. " _Yeong-ha's not a bad guy. He's just childish. He wants what he can't have._ "

Kiyoharu nods. He doesn't say that he's pretty sure that Ko already has him.

•

Ko doesn't show up at the bar that night. 

Kiyoharu downs four beers while he waits.

"You don't look too good," a guy tells him. "Mind if I sit with you?"

Kiyoharu looks up. The man is smiling at him.

Kiyoharu nods and smiles back.

•

Kiyoharu manages to avoid Ko until the end of the exhibition.

He's waiting to go on stage when Ko appears beside him. 

" _You weren't there last night,_ " Ko tells him conversationally.

" _Missed me?_ " Kiyoharu replies, rolling his eyes.

Ko doesn't reply, so Kiyoharu takes advantage of the situation to lean forward and put his hand on Ko's shoulder. Slowly, he places his lips against Ko's ear and whispers, " _I'm sure your bed won't be cold for long._ "

The announcer is introducing them right now and Kiyoharu pulls away. He thinks he sees something like anger in Ko's eyes before it blinks out and Ko heads towards the stage.

Kiyoharu follows.

•

"So," Daisuke says the next morning, "you play go?"

Kiyoharu nods and tries not to think about how weird it is to have someone that isn't Shindou in his apartment.

"That's cool. I've never played." Daisuke's foot is trailing up Kiyoharu's leg under the table. "Maybe you can teach me?"

•

He's well into his second year at Chuo. The classes are getting harder and he's sort of starting to regret minoring in Korean. He has the practice bar coming up as well as a presentation on international trade law between Korea and Japan. 

Hong has been e-mailing him weekly since Kiyoharu's game with Ko. Hong doesn't mention anything, but he knows that Hong knows and somehow that makes things different. 

He would try to talk to Shindou about it, but ever since Shindou and Touya fixed whatever the hell was wrong with them, Shindou has gone back to his very firm anti-Ko stance. Not to mention that Kiyoharu has been dating – can he even really call it that? – Daisuke for the last six months.

Daisuke is waiting in Kiyoharu's apartment when he gets home. Kiyoharu bites back a sigh and gives Daisuke a weak smile.

"I figured I'd make you dinner for a change," Daisuke says, and as soon as he mentions it, Kiyoharu can smell something good from his kitchen. 

"Thanks," Kiyoharu says and sets his backpack on the ground. Daisuke moves forward and wraps his arms around Kiyoharu's waist, lowering his face for a kiss.

Kiyoharu threads his hands through Daisuke's dark hair and closes his eyes. If he can't see, he can pretend that Daisuke is someone else.

•

Kiyoharu isn't really surprised to find Ko sitting on his couch. Daisuke is sitting in the armchair, silently staring at Kiyoharu with an accusing glare.

" _You'll have to excuse me,_ " Ko says with a smile. " _I was in the neighborhood._ "

" _In the neighborhood, my ass,_ " Kiyoharu retorts before turning to Daisuke. "Look, I'll call you later, okay?"

"I want to know what's going on, Yashiro," Daisuke demands, standing up and striding over to Kiyoharu. "Who is he?"

He's not sure how to answer so he doesn't. Daisuke shakes his head after a moment and heads toward the door. 

" _Somehow,_ " Ko says into the silence, " _I don't think he's going to be answering your calls._ "

Kiyoharu shakes his head and turns around. 

•

Kiyoharu hates himself.

Ko is laying beneath him and Kiyoharu is raising himself up and plunging down, over and over and over and all he can see is the way that Ko is looking at him. All he's focusing on is the way that Ko's hands are running up and down his body.

Ko's fingers graze Kiyoharu's nipples and Kiyoharu moans.

•

Ko is gone when Kiyoharu wakes up the next morning. He's almost convinced himself it's a dream until he goes into the bathroom. 

There are red scratches scattered across Kiyoharu's sides. A deep purple bruise rests next to Kiyoharu's left nipple.

•

He tries calling Daisuke once. 

Unsurprisingly, Daisuke doesn't answer. Kiyoharu doesn't leave a message.

•

Shindou is flopped on Kiyoharu's couch, reading JUMP, when Kiyoharu comes home. 

"I never should have given you a key," Kiyoharu grouses.

Shindou just grins and puts the magazine on Kiyoharu's coffee table. "I just wanted to come over and see if you were all right."

Kiyoharu frowns. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I haven't seen Daisuke around lately."

Ah. Kiyoharu shrugs. "It didn't work out. I'm fine."

Shindou doesn't seem convinced.

"It hadn't been working for a while," Kiyoharu tells him honestly. "He figured it was better to end it than to let it drag out." He doesn't mention Ko.

"Does it have anything to do with Su-yeong?"

Kiyoharu blinks. "Hong?"

Shindou nods and doesn't say anything.

"What could it possibly have to do with Hong?"

Shindou shrugs. "Well, Daisuke seemed to appear after that argument you had with Su-yeong, so I just kind of assumed."

He's trying to think of any argument he's ever had with Hong and can't think of any. "What argument?"

Shindou is starting to look uncomfortable. "After your guys' game at the exhibition."

It suddenly dawns on him that Shindou is talking about Kiyoharu's and Hong's conversation about Ko. Kiyoharu laughs. "There is nothing going on with me and Hong."

"You know we'd be okay with it if there was," Shindou informs him. 

Kiyoharu nods. "Yeah, I know."

•

He's pretty sure Hong already knows that Daisuke is a non-factor now, mostly because he's almost as sure that it was Hong who told Ko about Daisuke in the first place. He still isn't too sure why Ko even _cared_ , but he leaves it be. There's no point in trying to figure out anything that Ko does.

Instead, he throws himself into go and school. He's in three title leagues, including the Meijin league, which is still pretty shocking when he thinks about it. 

He's entering his last year of college and knows that he'll have to sign up for the bar exam soon. 

With everything going on, he almost manages to forget about Ko.

•

He receives an invitation to an international exhibition game in China, but it’s the week before the bar exam, so Kiyoharu has to decline.

Hong doesn’t seem to understand why Kiyoharu says no, and Kiyoharu doesn’t have the energy to explain that the bar is important to his parents, and pleasing his parents is important to him. Instead, he says that his workload at school is a bit heavier than usual and he needs to concentrate on it so that he doesn’t fail out.

He gets the feeling that Hong doesn’t buy the excuse, but Hong doesn’t ask anything else after that.

•

"We're all going out after the first part of the bar exam," Kitazawa tells him. "You should come with us."

Kiyoharu smiles weakly. He's exhausted and he's not sure how he's even going to manage to take this test. "I don't know," he says.

Kitazawa puts an arm around Kiyoharu's shoulders. "Come on," he cajoles, "there will be plenty of girls."

He doesn't bother to mention that he has no interest in girls, but in the end he agrees to go anyway. 

•

He's not sure how he does. It's why he likes go – he always knows how he's doing, regardless of where he is in the game. 

Kitazawa is waiting for him at the gates with a group of people Kiyoharu only vaguely recognizes. 

"Let's go."

Kiyoharu nods.

•

Somehow, they end up near nii-chome. Everyone except Kiyoharu is wasted and Kitazawa is daring Fuji to go into one of the gay bars. Fuji rolls his eyes before declaring that he's not afraid and walking towards a bar named Adam.

Kitazawa and the rest of the group are giggling. Twenty minutes pass and Kiyoharu is getting cold. 

He tells the rest of the group to go on ahead and he'll get Fuji and catch up with them later. Kitazawa agrees and Kiyoharu watches as the rest of them head towards the train station.

•

The bar is just like any other bar, except that men are straddling other men instead of women straddling men. He spots Fuji in a corner booth, sipping a glass of alcohol. There is a man sitting next to Fuji and Fuji doesn't seem to mind at all. 

Kiyoharu crosses the bar and takes the seat across from Fuji. He eyes Fuji's suitor before turning his attention back to Fuji. "Everyone else went ahead."

Fuji smiles. "Is that so?"

There's something about Fuji's eyes that makes Kiyoharu think of Ko and he has to shake his head. "Yeah. I told them we'd catch up."

Fuji's suitor disappears after a while, clearly annoyed that Fuji's attention is no longer on him. Kiyoharu realizes that he's glad.

"Would you care to have a drink, Yashiro?"

•

They end up at Fuji's place. Fuji tastes like vodka and something sweet.

They don't waste any time getting their clothes off. Fuji is watching him with half closed eyes and Kiyoharu is suddenly uncomfortable. The way Fuji is watching him makes him think of Ko and that's the last thing he wants to be doing right now. 

Fuji is lying on his bed, stroking himself. "There a problem?"

Kiyoharu shakes his head and crawls across the bed. "No."

•

Fuji is nothing like Daisuke – where Daisuke wanted commitment, Fuji expects nothing. Fuji reminds him of Ko in a lot of ways, and he knows that's a recipe for disaster.

They are studying for the next part of bar exam when Fuji leans over and kisses him. Kiyoharu kisses back and moves his books out of the way.

Fuji pulls back slowly and smiles. "Now, now," he says in a chiding tone, "we're supposed to be studying."

Kiyoharu rolls his eyes and moves forward.

•

He falls out in the second round of the Meijin league against Ashiwara 8-dan. 

Shindou, who has just beaten Ichiryuu-sensei, pats him on the shoulder. "Man, your game was all over the place. Were you even paying attention?"

Kiyoharu sighs. "I was distracted."

Shindou looks skeptical. "Distracted."

Kiyoharu nods.

"What were you thinking about?"

Kiyoharu shakes his head. "My head just wasn't here. That's all."

"I can see that," Shindou retorts. "Where was it? In Korea?"

He's starting to get annoyed. "Look, we all have bad days, okay? I just had a bad day."

•

Fuji is staying over the night before the final part of the bar exam. Neither of them are particularly tired, but Kiyoharu has a game after the test and Fuji is meeting with a few high school classmates afterwards, so they both agree that tonight is not a good night.

"Who are you trying to forget?" Fuji's voice is conversational and light, but the question makes Kiyoharu squirm.

"Why do you think I'm trying to forget someone?" Kiyoharu asks.

Fuji laughs in the darkness. "We're all trying to forget someone, Yashiro."

•

He doesn't wait for Fuji after the test. He knows that Fuji will understand.

It seems that Fuji understands more than Kiyoharu had thought.

•

He qualifies for the Kisei finals the same day he is informed that he's passed the bar exam.

Shindou and Waya offer to take him out for soba, and Kiyoharu isn't foolish enough to turn it down. After all, Waya and Shindou don't particularly like soba, and it's been a while since Kiyoharu's had it. 

"You're officially an 8-dan now," Waya says enviously after they order. "Man, I have _got_ to catch up or Morishita-sensei is going to _kill_ me."

Shindou grins and takes a sip of his Coke. "Don't worry, Waya. You're a 6-dan. What's another few years?"

Waya elbows Shindou in the stomach and Kiyoharu laughs. He feels his phone vibrate and he frowns, excusing himself from the table.

He doesn't look at his phone until he is outside of the restaurant, and when he does, he considers not answering. In the end, filial duty wins out and he presses 'accept.'

"Hello?"

"Kiyoharu." 

Kiyoharu hasn't heard his dad's voice in two years - he's only talked to his mom since he moved out, and even then, the conversations are brief and to the point.

"Father."

He hears his father clear his throat and Kiyoharu suddenly wishes he hadn't picked up. "Your mother and I heard you passed the bar exam."

"Yes."

He can imagine his father nodding. "Yes, well. We wanted to know what firms you were considering joining."

Kiyoharu closes his eyes. "I'm not."

There is silence on the other end for a moment before his father resumes speaking. "We had hoped that you would be over this ridiculous phase, Kiyoharu. We sent you to school so that you may prepare to get a real job."

The disappointment in his father's voice comes across the phone and slams into Kiyoharu's gut. He grinds his teeth together and replies, "This _is_ a real job, Father."

"This is a _hobby_ , Kiyoharu," his father says dismissively. "It is time for you to grow up. We will permit you to continue this… path of yours until you graduate. Then, you are expected to join the real world. Is that clear?"

His father doesn't wait for an answer and hangs up.

•

When he gets home, Hong is sitting on his doorstep.

Kiyoharu frowns. 

" _Some guy offered to let me in, but I figured I'd just wait for you outside._ " Hong informs him as Kiyoharu unlocks the front door.

" _Fuji,_ " Kiyoharu says and Hong shrugs.

" _Not sure,_ " Hong tells him as he takes his shoes off. " _He kept looking at me._ "

Kiyoharu remembers Fuji's question and smiles slightly. " _He probably thinks you’re the one I'm trying to forget._ "

Hong snorts. " _Not likely._ " 

" _Tea?_ "

" _Yes, please._ "

Kiyoharu goes into the kitchen while Hong makes himself comfortable on the couch. He's out of everything except black tea, so that's what he makes.

"So," Kiyoharu starts, switching back to Japanese, "What brings you to Japan?"

Hong shrugs. "Just felt like getting away, you know?"

Kiyoharu does, so he stays silent. Hong takes this for what it is and continues.

"Yeong-ha has been in a bad mood since the last international tournament, and Irufhan is more interested in winning than in playing."

"What happened at the last tournament?"

Hong rolls his eyes. "He won't tell me. But he kept looking for someone and obviously didn't find them."

Kiyoharu tenses.

"It would be easier on both of you if you'd both just admit it."

The kettle goes off and Kiyoharu pours the tea into the cups. He tosses three spoons of sugar in his and none in Hong's. He picks both cups up and hands one to Hong, who takes it with a nod of thanks.

"I don’t know what you're talking about," Kiyoharu says before sipping his tea.

Hong snorts. "Bull. You know exactly what I'm talking about; you're just pretending not to. Just like Yeong-ha."

Kiyoharu doesn't say anything.

•

Fuji is a sadist, Kiyoharu decides. People are staring at his neck and he knows they can see the mark. He knows this because he doesn't own anything with a collar high enough to hide it, which Fuji knows, what with all the time that Fuji spends in Kiyoharu's apartment.

Ko is watching him from across the room and Kiyoharu is doing a pretty good job of avoiding him. He can't escape Ko's eyes, but that's something he can't control. At the very least, he can keep fifty meters between them at all times.

Of course, it's difficult to keep fifty meters between anyone in the Ki-in's bathroom. Kiyoharu is splashing his face with water when he hears the door lock. He doesn't even bother to look up when Ko puts a possessive hand on Kiyoharu's waist.

" _You look cheap,_ " Ko tells him, running his lips down Kiyoharu's neck.

" _What do you want?_ " Kiyoharu doesn't have the energy to fight tonight. 

Ko smiles. " _I want to play a game._ "

•

He's not sure why he brings Ko back to his apartment. After all, Ko has a perfectly good hotel room, and it's not like he has to share with anyone. It almost feels like breaking the rules, except this isn't the first time that Ko's been here and he really doesn't need to think about that right now. Regardless, they are already there by the time Kiyoharu thinks to suggest using Ko's hotel room and by then it's too late.

Ko is already running his hand down the front of Kiyoharu's pants by the time Kiyoharu gets the door open. He barely has time to close it before Ko has him pinned to the door and is kissing him senseless.

Kiyoharu digs his fingers into the front of Ko's shirt and starts to pull. He hears the faint _pop_ of one of the buttons coming off and applies more pressure. Either Ko doesn't notice or he doesn't care, which suits Kiyoharu just fine.

A moment later, Kiyoharu has his hand down the front of Ko's pants and is panting into Ko's neck.

" _This isn't a good idea,_ " Kiyoharu says between breaths. He's going to say more when Ko nips Kiyoharu's collar bone and speeds up his stroke on Kiyoharu's cock. Whatever Kiyoharu was going to say comes out as a moan.

" _Is it ever?_ " Ko says, spreading his legs so Kiyoharu can get a better grip.

Kiyoharu closes his eyes and thrusts into Ko's hand, trying his best to match his pace to Ko's.

He uses his free hand to guide Ko's mouth back to his. " _I don't know,_ " Kiyoharu whispers against Ko's lips. Ko takes it as an invitation.

•

When he wakes up, Ko is lying next to him. He stares for a moment before getting out of bed and going into the kitchen.

Fuji is sitting at the table, sipping tea and reading a book.

Kiyoharu is about to turn around, partly because he's not sure he can deal with this, but mostly because he's not wearing any pants, when Fuji looks up and smiles. 

"Your tea is on the counter," Fuji informs him and goes back to his book. 

Kiyoharu stops by the bathroom and shrugs on his yukata. He picks up his tea, sits at the table, and waits.

"I take it he's the one you're trying to forget?"

Kiyoharu glances back toward his room to make sure that Ko isn't suddenly going to appear. "Yeah."

Fuji nods as if he's known it all along. Which, Kiyoharu thinks, he apparently has.

Fuji places his cup on the table and stands. Kiyoharu walks him to the door. 

"When he leaves again," Fuji says, looking towards Kiyoharu's room, "you have my number."

Kiyoharu shakes his head. Before he can say anything, Fuji leans forward and kisses him. 

A minute passes before Fuji pulls away and smirks. "See you later, _Kiyoharu_."

Kiyoharu doesn't need to turn around to know that Ko is standing behind him.

" _I take it he's the one who gave you that bruise on your neck._ " Ko says.

Kiyoharu glares at the closed door. Fuji is definitely a sadist.

•

He wants to say that things don't change, but that would be a lie. 

He now has Ko's e-mail address, even though he hasn't actually written to him. It's in his address book, and whenever he opens his phone, it mocks him. Whenever Ko is in Japan, they no longer bother with the bars and the hotel rooms.

Ko still _has_ a hotel room, but, as far as Kiyoharu can tell, he doesn't _sleep_ there. 

They still don't talk about anything and that suits Kiyoharu just fine; too much change is never good, and he doesn't want Ko thinking that Kiyoharu might want a relationship, because Kiyoharu doesn't.

At least, he thinks he doesn’t.

Shindou notices something is different and Kiyoharu is just waiting for Shindou to say something, anything really. He figures the sooner Shindou figures it out, the better, even though he's not exactly sure what there is for Shindou to figure out.

•

Between the tournaments, league matches and oteai matches, Kiyoharu barely manages to get his theses in on time. 

He's not surprised when he gets full marks on his Korean thesis – after all, Hong helped him out every step of the way, and then read over it for any stupid mistakes which Kiyoharu was known to make. What does surprise him is getting full marks on his law thesis.

"You have some very interesting ideas, Yashiro-kun," his professor tells him the last day of class. "It's a shame you won't consider going into trade law."

Kiyoharu bows and leaves the classroom.

He doesn't bother to turn around and look back.

•

He invites the Morishita study group as well as the Touya study group to his graduation. After all, he spends equal time between the two, and both groups are more supportive than his parents.

He knows that his parents are there, somewhere in the crowd. Part of him wants to find them, to say, 'Look, I did what you wanted. Why can't you be proud of me?' The other part wants to ignore them like they ignore him. What will happen, he knows, is some mix of the two.

The announcer calls his name and Kiyoharu stands. He walks across the stage as the man announces his programs. He bows to the woman who hands him his certificate and exits the stage.

Shindou and Touya are waiting for him. 

•

Everyone is congratulating him and Waya suggests they all go out for drinks to celebrate. Kiyoharu is about to agree when he hears a familiar voice calling his name.

Shindou is looking behind Kiyoharu with an odd expression. 

Kiyoharu turns around and faces his father.

"Kiyoharu."

"Father." There isn't the slightest trace of pride on his father's face. He knows it shouldn't surprise him, but it still hurts.

"You will join your mother and me for dinner." There is no room for arguments.

Kiyoharu looks at the people behind him and smiles weakly. "Sorry, guys," he says. 

Saeki 8-dan steps forward and smiles. "No problem. We'll celebrate later. You should spend some time with your family."

Everyone else murmurs their agreement except for Shindou and Touya. 

"I'll catch up with you guys later," Kiyoharu tells them and Shindou nods.

•

The restaurant his father chooses is expensive. The food tastes like cardboard, and no one is smiling. Kiyoharu tries to ignore all of that and focuses on his water.

"Have you decided?" his father asks as he cuts his filet mignon. 

Kiyoharu stares at the glass of water harder. "No."

His mother remains quiet and pours his father another glass of wine.

"That's fine," his father says. "We have picked some firms in Tokyo. You will meet with them tomorrow."

Kiyoharu raises his eyes from the water glass and shakes his head. "No."

His father narrows his eyes. "What do you mean no?"

"I mean no. I will not meet with them. I have a job – one that I'm good at."

Kiyoharu's father snorts derisively. "Go will get you nowhere, Kiyoharu. You will meet with the firms tomorrow."

There is a note of finality in his father's voice that makes something in Kiyoharu snap. He stands and places his napkin on the table. "I will not."

"Sit down, Kiyoharu."

"No," Kiyoharu says, shaking his head. "Not until you understand."

"I will not argue with a child, Kiyoharu," his father says quietly. "You will do as you are told, or you will no longer be a part of this family."

Kiyoharu laughs bitterly. "Fine," he says and puts his jacket back on. "It's not like I was a part of it anyway."

•

When he gets home, there is an e-mail waiting for him from Ko.

_Congratulations, Yashiro._

He wonders what that says about him that Ko says congratulations when his own parents won't.

•

He's awakened the next morning by loud knocking on his door. He rolls out of bed and tosses on a pair of shorts and a tank top and goes to answer it.

Shindou is standing outside with an obnoxiously cheerful grin. Touya is standing beside him with containers that Kiyoharu hopes contain food.

He moves aside to let them in.

Touya excuses himself to make tea and heat up whatever is in the containers. Kiyoharu doesn't argue. 

Shindou sits down at the table and gives Kiyoharu an assessing look. "So."

Kiyoharu yawns. "What?"

"How did it go?"

He snorts. "How do you think?"

Shindou shakes his head. "Seriously? You go through all of that and they're _still_ not happy?"

Kiyoharu shrugs. "I've come to the conclusion that _nothing_ I do will make them happy."

"I know," Shindou says suddenly. "We should get away for a little while. Your schedule is light for the next few weeks, right? We should go to Hokkaido."

Kiyoharu blinks. "That sounds fun and all, but I'm going to Korea tomorrow."

Now it's Shindou's turn to blink. "Korea."

Kiyoharu nods. "I told Hong I'd come visit for something other than Go once I was finished with school."

Shindou levels a serious gaze on Kiyoharu. "Are you _sure_ there's nothing going on between you and Su-yeong?"

It's a struggle to keep from banging Shindou's head against the table. "Are you still stuck on that?"

"Well, you go to Korea a lot," Shindou explains. "And you even learned Korean even though Su-yeong speaks Japanese. And you and Su-yeong seem pretty close."

"You are so focusing on the wrong Korean," Kiyoharu mutters.

He can see the exact moment things click into place in Shindou's head.

"Ko Yeong-ha." Shindou's face is the perfect picture of absolute horror that Kiyoharu almost laughs.

Touya chooses this moment to walk into the room, carrying a tray with three teacups. He gives Shindou an incredulous look. "Did you _just_ figure that out? Honestly, Shindou."

Shindou narrows his eyes and fixes Touya with an accusing glare. "You knew."

Touya is passing out the teacups, which Kiyoharu takes gratefully. "Of course I knew, Shindou," Touya says, spooning sugar into his own cup. "You'd have to be blind not to know."

Shindou is looking back and forth between Touya and Kiyoharu. "Am I the only one who didn't know?"

Kiyoharu shrugs. "To be fair, _I_ don't even know what's going on."

Shindou spends the rest of the meal in silence, going back and forth between disbelief and accusatory stares.

Touya tells Kiyoharu to ignore it, which Kiyoharu thinks is easier said than done. 

•

He sleeps on the plane. He doesn't even realize they've landed until the flight attendant shakes him awake and informs him that they've arrived and he needs to disembark. 

He grabs his carry-on and quickly makes his way off the plane. He rubs his forehead and decides that this is going to be a long, long trip.

Hong is waiting for him in the terminal. Kiyoharu is about to raise his hand in greeting when he notices Ko standing off to the side. Kiyoharu slows down. Hong notices and Kiyoharu swears he can hear Hong sigh.

" _How was the flight?_ " Hong asks as soon as Kiyoharu is close enough to hear him. Ko is watching him and Kiyoharu figures that as long as Ko doesn't say anything, Kiyoharu doesn't have to say anything.

" _It was fine,_ " Kiyoharu says, heading towards baggage claim. He doesn't mention that he fell asleep on the plane – that's nothing new. At this point, he figures that Hong expects it.

Hong nods his head and doesn't say anything.

•

He spends his first day in Korea sleeping. Hong has a game that day, and while Kiyoharu wants to watch, his exhausted body clearly has other ideas; he wishes Hong good luck and crawls back into the guest bed. 

When he wakes up, it's dark outside and he feels worse than when he went to sleep. He rolls out of the bed and into the kitchen. There is a cup of tea on the counter waiting for him.

He frowns and looks around, but no one is there. He's about to shrug it off when he sees notices the light under the bathroom door is lit. Deciding that Hong will be right out, Kiyoharu seats himself at the table and waits.

The door opens and Ko steps out.

It probably says something about Kiyoharu's frame of mind that he isn't even surprised. Instead, he waits until Ko sits at the table before he says anything.

" _Thank you_ ," Kiyoharu says and derives a little satisfaction from the confused look that briefly flashes across Ko's face.

It doesn't last long, of course. Ko folds his hands on the table and looks at Kiyoharu. " _For what?_ "

Kiyoharu shrugs. " _The e-mail a while ago._ "

" _Oh? So you did receive it,_ " Ko says. " _I wasn't sure since there was no reply._ "

" _I didn't get the chance,_ " Kiyoharu says nonchalantly. " _There were other things going on._ "

He's not sure why he says that because he has no intention of explaining it, but he finds that he's curious to see if Ko asks. 

Ko, however, doesn't rise to the bait. " _I would imagine so,_ " he says instead.

They sit in silence for a few moments. Kiyoharu is struggling to find a topic of conversation when he realizes that this is probably the most that they've said to each other. He's suddenly very uncomfortable; Ko, predictably, looks perfectly at ease.

" _Is the tea sweet enough?_ " Ko asks and Kiyoharu blinks. He had forgotten about the tea. He takes another sip and nods. " _I wasn't sure how much sugar to put in,_ " Ko explains, " _but considering the vile things you drink, I assumed the sweeter the better._ "

There isn't anything to say to that, so Kiyoharu doesn't try. He wants to ask how Ko even knows what he drinks, but he supposes that maybe Ko has been paying more attention than Kiyoharu originally thought.

•

When Hong comes back, hands full of take out, Kiyoharu and Ko are sitting at the table arguing about Touya Kouyo's latest game on the  
amateur circuit.

"I see you two are getting along," Hong says, and Kiyoharu rolls his eyes. 

Before Kiyoharu can say anything, Ko cuts in. " _It is generally polite to speak in a language that everyone understands when in a group._ "

It's Hong's turn to roll his eyes and Kiyoharu laughs. 

By the time Ko leaves, Kiyoharu is almost sad to see him go.

•

He's just finished a pick-up game when he sees Ko leaning against the wall. He finishes up the post-game discussion, returns the black stones to the goke and walks over to where Ko is standing.

" _Where's Hong?_ " Kiyoharu asks, mostly because he's not really sure how to be alone with Ko, and Hong is safe. 

Ko shrugs. " _I don't know._ "

" _Oh._ "

He's really beginning to hate the awkward silences, but he can't seem to break the habit of not saying anything. He's about to ask a really inane question when Ko asks him to lunch.

He says yes without even thinking about it.

•

The restaurant is nice. There is a mix of people, and neither of them look out of place, which is a huge feat considering Ko and his designer slacks and button ups and Kiyoharu's jeans and t-shirts. He's not surprised when they get a table immediately – Ko seems to be ridiculously popular _everywhere._

Kiyoharu picks up the menu and frowns. " _It's all noodle dishes._ "

There is an amused smile on Ko's face. " _I heard you like noodles._ "

" _Have you been stalking me?_ " The question is only half serious.

" _I've been paying attention._ "

Kiyoharu doesn't have anything to say to that.

The server appears at the table, and they order their food. The server leaves, promising to have their food out as soon as possible, and they are left alone again.

" _I pay attention,_ " Kiyoharu finally says.

Ko raises an eyebrow. " _Is that so?_ "

Kiyoharu nods.

" _And?_ "

Kiyoharu is at a loss, because he can't say that the only thing he's really noticed are the people Ko may or may not have slept with. It's none of his business, and there's no real reason to bring it up now, anyway.

" _What do you want from me, Ko?_ "

" _It depends,_ " Ko says seriously. He's looking Kiyoharu in the eye and Kiyoharu wants to squirm. Instead, he stares right back.

" _On what?_ "

" _On what you're willing to give._ "

•

He spends the next day thinking. 

He tries to explain to Hong all the ways that this is a bad idea, but Hong doesn't seem to care.

" _Will it make you happy?_ " Hong seems to think this is the only question that matters.

Kiyoharu isn't quite sure that Hong is wrong.

•

Vacations, Kiyoharu decides, never last as long as they should.

He's at the airport with Hong and Ko. Hong is watching them both with satisfaction, and Kiyoharu has seen enough of that smug look the past few days to be almost happy that he's leaving.

Ko steps forward and places a hand briefly on Kiyoharu's hip. " _Next month._ "

Kiyoharu takes a quick breath before nodding. " _E-mail me when you book your flight._ "

•

He shows up early to his oteai match to find Shindou sitting in the game hall.

"Yo."

Shindou looks up and nods. "How was Korea?"

Kiyoharu shrugs and sits down. "It was fine. Played some pick-up games."

Shindou grins. "Got your ass kicked?"

He flips Shindou off. "I managed to win a few times."

"Against the six year olds, you mean."

Kiyoharu elbows Shindou in the side. "You're a real ass. I don't know how Touya puts up with you."

Shindou shrugs. "The same way Ko puts up with you, I guess."

He eyes Shindou warily. 

Shindou is looking up at the ceiling with a serious look on his face. "Did you guys get whatever it is straightened out?"

It's Kiyoharu's turn to shrug. "We'll see. He's coming to Japan next month."

Shindou nods. "I guess that's good."

It's not an apology, but Kiyoharu supposes that this is as good as he's getting and decides to let it go. "I think it is."

"Then that's all that matters, right?"

•

They e-mail each other when they have the time, which seems to be more often as it gets closer to Ko's flight.

He's at Waya's study group when his phone chimes. He pulls it out of his pocket and quickly reads the e-mail. 

Shindou leans over and starts trying to read it, as well, until Touya pulls the back of his collar and drags Shindou away from Kiyoharu's phone.

Kiyoharu stands and pockets his phone. "Sorry guys," he says as he grabs his messenger bag. "I've got some stuff to take care of."

"More like some _thing,_ " he hears Shindou mutter. Touya nudges Shindou in the ribs and Shindou yelps. Kiyoharu rolls his eyes. 

"All right," Waya says, giving Shindou a curious look. "See you."

Kiyoharu says bye to everyone and leaves.

•

He meets Ko in the terminal. 

" _Did you check a bag?_ " Kiyoharu asks. He's smiling and he knows it must look ridiculous, but he's kind of hopeful and doesn't care.

Ko shakes his head. The fact that Ko is smiling as well makes him feel a little better.

" _Then let's go._ "

**Works inspired by this one:**

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